martes, abril 30, 2013

Within the landscape of contemporary electronic
music, Matmos is an ensemble that has managed to stand out through mere
innovation. The release of each one of their records responds to a programmatic
conception. For The marriage of true
minds (2013), they made parapsychological experiments on several test
subjects. They basically tried to transfer what they aimed with this record to
those subjects, and then, they collected what those subjects thought they
received. I know, it sounds delusional to a certain degree. But the
materialization of the project is rather interesting. The marriage of true minds may seem to have an abstract profile,
but its solid tracks also holds some sort of narrative. Matmos continues to
inject excitement into the electronic music scene, which is something that I,
as fan of the genre, feel obliged to celebrate.

lunes, abril 29, 2013

I love the music of Maurice Ravel.
And when you love something, I guess you try to spread your passion to others,
in some way or another. In this case, that way is a conscious one: I have
decided, through this post, to introduce you to the magnificent oeuvre of
Ravel.

Maurice Ravel, like the rest of the so-called “realists”, Bartók and Janáček,
didn’t have urban origins -he was born in a small town called Ciboure. This
location, placed in the French Basque country, determined Ravel’s unique
musical discourse: a stylized, sophisticated amalgam of Hispanic and Gallic
sonorities.

According to Alex Ross, Ravel’s first piano works “carried out a kind of velvet
revolution, renewing the language of music without disturbing the peace”. Ravel
was, then, a particular revolutionary –a quiet one. This single feature, in my
opinion, acts a curse in disguise for his legacy. I strongly believe Ravel’s
music has been unjustly underestimated. Although many remarkable composers cite
him as an influence (Stravinsky, Messiaen, Copland, Piazzolla), with the exception of his Boléro, his music isn’t that frequently
played in the orchestral circuit.

Nonetheless, that condition responds to his own nature. Ravel was known to be
quite charming when in contact with others, but he also was a shy and lonely
individual. His humble character didn’t allow him to have great ambitions for
his music. Besides, he wasn’t particularly prolific. Notwithstanding, that same
austerity injected such appealing glamour to his music.

Scholars and historians have often considered Ravel as the most pure French
composer, a statement that stands on the French quality of his music, one that certainly
inherits the three features of French culture: an elegant overall tone, plenty of graceful
moments, and the superb clarity of
his masterful orchestration (Leonard Bernstein once hailed Boléro as
“the bible of orchestration”.And if you need to further prove Ravel's proficiency in outlining the orchestra's vocabulary, listen to Mussorgsky's Pictures at an exhibition, orchestrated by him.)

That splendid tone consists of his handling of texture, an extraordinary
disposition of timbres that says a lot about his domain at the manipulation of the
orchestra’s expressive resources. Throughout his catalog, a fine approach to
harmony (indebted to Debussy), an ingenious treatment of texture (often
attributed to Mussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov) and an acute sense to craft
ingenious rhythmic structures (influenced by Stravinsky) is what make Ravel one
of the freshest composers of the twentieth century.

There are several perks for getting close to Ravel’s music. First of all, his
works, in contrast to many of his contemporaries’, aren’t particularly demanding.
And second, his pieces are generally short and, above all, recipients of a high-level
beauty.

I really hope you get to delve into Ravel’s stylish constellation of notes. You
will not be disappointed, rest assured; au
contraire, I would even dare to affirm that you will end up like me: an
obsessive fan of his music, making a compelling case to drag others into his
marvelous musical world.

sábado, abril 27, 2013

Jamie Lidell is a musician with a restless
curiosity. He enjoys immersing in different genres, seemingly evading a natural
sense of failure. He first became known for his ingenious integration of soul
with electronic music. But his appetite exceeded that first venture. However, his
explorations of other genres, like indie-rock for example, haven’t been that
successful in my opinion. Luckily, with his latest album, Jamie Lidell (2013), he’s back to that sound I first enjoyed so
much. His approach remains imaginative and fresh, reminiscent to old-school paraphernalia
present in 70’s Parliament and early 80’s Prince: this is digital funk for a
digital era. Jamie Lidell remains adventurous, only this time his experiment
has proven out to be a delightful one.

miércoles, abril 24, 2013

Ballet has always been infatuated by dreams. This
fascination is rather useful: ballet is arguably the most ethereal of all
performing arts. In order to convey something, dancers have nothing but their
bodies. Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s
adventures in Wonderland, is a story that deals precisely with dreams as
symptoms to the power of the imagination –a subject naturally given to a balletic
treatment.

Recently, I had the opportunity in Buenos Aires to watch a live stream of the Royal
Ballet’s Alice’s adventures in Wonderland.
This was my first time watching a ballet performance at a movie theater, and I
have to say it was a very fortunate one: I just loved this production.

Christopher Wheeldon’s choreography relied heavily on the handling of the corps
de ballet, which was certainly impressive. However, with the exception of the
character of The Mad Tapper, individuality didn’t play a major role. Alice’s
role, for example, wasn’t offered many chances to stand out or shine.

The use of props was very ingenious: the way the dancers were able to integrate
them into the story they were telling, with the aid of superb visuals, was at
times breathtaking. Technology definitely played a vital role within the production
team’s goal of dazzling the audience.

Joby Talbot’s score was, to put it mildly, efficient. The composer, wisely
applying a cinematic approach, managed to deliver a musical foundation onto the
story could stand firmly. Talbot’s use of orchestral resources was perhaps too
cautious. His language was strictly traditional and excessively conservative -he
could have made a better use of the brass and the strings sections in certain
passages of the ballet. I would even dare to say that, while the music was appropriate,
in the end resulted the least imaginative element of the production.

Alice’s adventures in Wonderland is a
triumph, and a testament to Royal Ballet’s pursuit of entertaining its audience
through the presentation of original material. After seeing this marvelous
production, one can only hope that is performed more frequently, even by other
ballet companies around the world.

In times like these, where many critics and scholars moan, with a very
pessimistic tone, about the not-so-bright future of ballet, an exciting new
production like this not only brings well-crafted entertainment but also delivers
a needed amount of hope for this magnificent art form.

martes, abril 16, 2013

Emmy Rossum is primarily known as an actress. But
her first love has always been music. She sang even before learning how to
speak. While she develops a notable career in television and movies, she works
on her music, delivering solid material along the way. Sentimental journey, her latest release, pays homage to those
magnificent love songs recorded in the 20’s and 30’s. The result is an
endearing suite of songs, all of them executed flawlessly by the histrionic,
delightfully theatrical voice of Rossum. There are plenty of records of jazz
standards, but Rossum’s incarnates a singularity: one that is based in candor
and tenderness. Sentimental journey
is a record to fall in love with, either be music, or any other thing that
might represent the object of your affection.

miércoles, abril 10, 2013

Obscurity is often associated with negative
features. The thing is that, in both art and life, absence of clarity usually offers
a good perspective to look deep inside us. Nick Cave is a proficient artist
when it comes to manage mystery, an ability that becomes evident in its latest
release with the Bad Seeds, Push the sky
away (2013). This is a delicate record, one in which that old adage of ‘less is more’ seemed
to be applied to the construction and arrangements of its tunes, whose lyrics
involve some sort of melancholic introspection. By handling darkness wisely,
Nick Cave has made very alluring music indeed. And listening to a record like Push the sky away offers a great
opportunity for us to lose fear to that negative side of ourselves, and get closer
to them.

jueves, abril 04, 2013

Argentinian supergroup Bajofondo has evolved in
a very interesting way. They began manipulating tango with electronic music (Bajofondo Tango Club), then they
ventured into songwriting featuring special guests (Mar dulce) and now they have developed a marvelous proficiency when
it comes to the creation of instrumental tunes: Presente (2013), in which they have found their voice. That
discovery carries a sense of confidence and reassurance that is evident throughout
this powerful collection of tracks. The separation of the genres they have
approached on this occasion has become blurrier; hence, their identity as a
musical ensemble has proven solidified. The greatest attribute of this album is
the mastery at crafting strong pieces that are, at the same time, catchy and
sophisticate. Tango’s paradoxic features of popularity and complexity cohabit
magnificently with more modern sounds. And that, my friends, is nothing but an
impressive feat.
This is the video for Pide piso

Writer, Electronic Musician. I have written for Revista OJO, Ladosis, El Librero, Afropop Worldwide, AcidJazzHispano and DressCODE. I have published the ebooks "¿A qué suena Caracas?", "Un café con leche pequeño" and "create every day". I recorded an EP called "¡épale!"